Black Blossom
by YukinaLoveStories
Summary: Anko Mitarashi saves Sakura from being bullied. Against her better judgement she takes Sakura as her student to become one of the fiercest shinobi of her generation..
1. Chapter 1

_Run. Run. Run. Faster. Don't get caught_ ,Sakura thought.

Her feet made splashing sounds against the wet concrete, alerting her pursuers of her presence. She had no idea why these older girls were chasing her; usually it was only the group of academy girls in her class. However, today was different because when she had last looked over her shoulder there had been at least four academy graduates with forehead protectors chasing after her.

 _There_ , she thought, _behind the dango stand there's a hole in the fence I can use to escape._

She flung herself around the corner only to find that her escape route had recently been patched. Her breath quickened when she heard the steps stop behind her.

"Hey, forehead girl! My sister Ami said you pushed her over yesterday for no reason. You gotta pay for making her favorite dress dirty," the obvious leader of the group yelled.

"I-I… she-she was the one," Sakura tried to get out. She hadn't wanted to hurt anyone, but Ami and her friends had pushed her down yesterday and started kicking her because she had talked to Sasuke. She had just wanted the pain to stop and had started kicking out with her legs.

The group of girls stepped closer and Sakura's knees gave out in fear. _After all,_ she thought, _if Ami and her friends can hurt me imagine what a graduate can do._ She scrambled backwards awkwardly until her back hit the fence.

Ami's sister and her friends laughed, "She's so scared and there isn't even any killing intent."

"Your sister was right," another girl tittered, "She really doesn't deserve to be a ninja."

"I am a shinobi," Sakura squeaked out through her fear.

The girls looked at her then sneered as if her appearance disgusted them and Sakura curled into a ball.

"No sweetheart, you're just at girl whose forehead is too big to be able to find herself a civilian husband."

Ami's sister laughed nastily. "Oh good one Fuki, but you know," she started slyly, "She may be good for one thing."

Fuki held her hand to her mouth in false surprise, "Really? You think she can be useful as something?"

She took out a kunai, "Target practice."

Sakura squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the sting of steel and the thwack of the kunai hitting the fence behind her or worse the thwack of the kunai hitting her. Fortunately for Sakura the sounds she expected never occurred. Instead there was the ring of steel against steel and the clatter of kunai to the ground.

"What do yall think you're doing?! You're shinobi, you're meant to protect the weak not bully them. Four gennins against an academy student," a scoff, "How shameful."

"Look lady!" Ami's sister started. There was a soft swish of something being thrown and then, "You cut my face."

"Get out of here girlie, there's no place in the shinobi world for cowards like you."

Sakura couldn't tell what happened next, but soon there was the sound of four pairs of retreating footsteps.

Sakura peaked through her lashes at her savior. The woman had black hair and mesh body suit covered by a trench coat with her forehead protector proudly displayed. One fist was raised in the air and shaking at the receding girls her other holding a bag of dango.

"That's right ya pipsqueaks you better run!" she called out then did an about face to look at Sakura.

Sakura flinched. The woman sighed and moved to crouch in front of her. She pulled napkin out of her bag and began to wipe dirty water from Sakura's face then handed her a stick of her precious dango.

"Here. What's your name kid?"

Sakura held the dango stick between her forefinger and thumb keeping it far from her as if it was poisonous and looked at the woman with distrust. "Sakura Haruno, ma'am."

"Anko Mitarashi." Anko pushed herself up to stand, "Next time something like that happens try _not_ to go to a secluded place. Pick someplace busy and find an adult, kay?"

Sakura nodded mechanically.

"Good," the older woman turned on heel and began walking away.

Sakura scrambled after her savior, this was her chance to become strong, "Wait onee-san! Please teach me!"

Her savior looked over her shoulder confused, "Eh?"

"Please teach me to be strong like you. I don't want to be a weak anymore, please," the young girl begged.

"Look kid, I know I was all nice and gave you dango and stuff, but trust me I'm no sensei."

"But you're strong. You made those girls go away," Sakura pleaded.

Anko sighed, "I'm definitely not role model material, kid. In fact if my colleagues ever saw me with a kid they'd probably restrain me for fear I was corrupting young ones."

Sakura bowed deeply, her entire face towards the ground, "Please teach me."

"Fine! Get up, you're freaking me out."

Sakura got up.

"Good. Now if you want me to be you're teacher, then you're going to have to do whatever I say."

Sakura nodded.

"Ask no questions, train till you can't feel your limbs, train till your limbs are on fire, get me dango, do my paper work and most importantly," she paused for dramatic effect, "you'll have to meet my boss, Ibiki Morino, head of Torture and Interrogation. Can you accept?"

Sakura stood unflinching. She was determined to change herself, today's run in had shown her that even though her grades at the academy were good Ami's sister had been right: she was no shinobi, "Yes, Anko-Sensei."

"Good! Now eat that dango," she caught Sakura's confused expression, "Eating that dango is agreeing to my terms. Like a contract." She watched the young girl bite viciously into the dumplings and smiled. "Call me Anko. Don't call me sensei, I am not that old. No chan or san either."

She started walking and smiled when Sakura followed her without prompting. _When I'm done with you, Blossom, you're going to be just as dark as me._


	2. Chapter 2

Sakura sat in front of Ibiki Morino's desk, Anko watching her from her place on the windowsill behind him. Ibiki leaned forward. Sakura did not flinch and continued lounging in her chair staring at the head of T&I as if his glare didn't affect her. Her hair, henged into brown and pulled up in a ponytail, swishing back and forth in a display of boredom.

Finally he sighed in defeat and sat back in his chair. "All right Haruno lets make this clear. The only reason that you're getting any of this information is because we don't want you to reveal your true skills." Ibiki paused and Sakura sat up straight, attentive and listening now that their usual power play was over. He smirked internally, _Anko has done a good job with this one_ , and slapped a file onto the desk. "Your gennin Sensei has been revealed as on Hatake Kakashi."

Sakura grabbed the file and flipped through it, "I'm not sure what this has to do with anything."

"I was getting there. Hatake is going to test you and your team after he meets you. His usual test has never been passed," Sakura crossed her arms, "Not because of skill, but because the real test is to work together. We are telling you about him for two reasons. One: so that you won't use any of your real skills during the test, and two: so you don't use them on missions. Unless it is a life or death situation, which it shouldn't, you are not allowed to show any real skill. Hatake is an Anbu and is trained well enough to protect all of you. Understood?"

Sakura put the file back on the desk, "Understood."

He tossed the file into a pile of papers, "Good. You and Anko are free to train."

Sakura didn't bother bowing as she left. Strangely enough her and Ibiki had developed an understanding these past few years. The first time she met Ibiki Morino was the day Anko took her to T&I headquarters to ask her boss if it was okay for her to have an apprentice.

~Flashback~

 _"No," Ibiki didn't even look up from his paperwork._

 _Anko sighed, "Sorry kid, but the old man has his mind made up."_

 _Sakura looked in horror between the two adults. This had been her only chance to get strong she couldn't let it slip out of her grip. "Please Old Man-sama! I need Anko to help make me stronger."_

 _Anko snorted at the 'old man-sama'. Ibiki looked up for the first time. "She has pink hair."_

 _"Yup."_

 _"Mitarashi, what kind of ninja has pink hair," he asked in disbelief._

 _Sakura wasn't finished yet, "Please! I'll do anything you ask me. I'll buy you dango. I'll do you paperwork. I'll-I'll… spy on people! No one suspects a child."_

 _Ibiki lost interest and went back to his paperwork, "You've got pink hair kid. You're the last person who would be able to do infiltration work."_

 _"But there are shinobi techniques that change your appearance."_

 _"Can you do them?_

 _"No, but-"_

 _"Then what use are you?"_

 _"I can learn!" Her sensei had told her that she had excellent chakra control. When the class had done the leaf exercise hers hadn't fallen, not even once._

 _Ibiki tilted his head, "Fine if you can learn how to henge in a week without Mitarashi's help, then I'll allow her to take you as an apprentice. Now scram."_

 _The look on Ibiki's face when she came back not even two days later transformed into Anko was priceless._

~End Flashback~

After Ibiki had sanctioned Sakura's involvement, and told her that she'd be required to be henged at all time when she was with Anko or in the T&I office, Anko had gone to work starting Sakura all over with the basics. She relearned all the taijutsu forms, went through all the chakra exercises like leaf sticking, tree walking, water walking and meditaion. Learning her elements were earth and water. Basic ninjutsu and genjutsu. As well as basic interrogation techniques and general ninja knowledge.

Sakura became a prodigy and with her ever changing appearance she was the perfect spy.

~Flashback`

 _"Now," Anko had told her one day when they were sparing, "Because you always change you're the perfect spy. No one knows that you train with me, so no one will suspect a girl with pink hair who does less than average in practical ninja arts. One day we're going to need you to be able to be 'Sakura' and spy on people or just monitor them and you'll be the last person anyone will suspect."_

 _The day they spoke of had come sooner than expected when one day Ibiki called them into his office and thrust a file at them, "Sasuke Uchiha. Only survivor of the Uchiha massacre. Inoichi said that he passed the psychological evaluation, but the Hokage wants us to watch him to make sure that he's not a threat. That's where you come in Cherry," Sakura rolled her eyes at her oh so clever nick name, "We want you to act like all the other girls in your class and swoon over the Uchiha brat."_

 _"I don't need to swoon over him to watch him."_

 _"No you don't, but it'll raise less questions later if a fangirl watches him 24/7 than if the quiet one does."_

~End Flashback~

And Ibiki had been right. Sasuke had practiced by himself relentlessly and one day when she was following him home he finally noticed. He'd called her out and she'd preteded to be an airheaded bimbo and asked if he wanted to go to the park together. He'd sneered at her and told her to go home, but didn't call her out when she followed him home again.

To be honest not even her parents knew her other side. At home and at school she dressed in her dresses with her long pink hair loose and a bow in it. At work she braided her long hair back and worked in easy to move in pants. At home she cast a low level genjutsu over her scrolls to make them look like romance novels and hid her kunai, shuriken and senbon in pretty jewelry boxes. At school she aced her written work and did only well enough to pass in practical work. The only people who knew of her true skills where Anko, Ibiki and the Hokage.

When she'd had to start swooning over Sasuke, Ino had broken off their friendship. When Anko had asked her about it she'd told her, "I want to be stronger to protect myself and Konoha. There will be sacrifices." Anko had asked her about friends and she replied, "I have you." Anko had stated that she was her teacher not her friend and Sakura had laughed and cheekily replied that, "You're far too young to be a sensei," and Anko had ruffled her hair and told her that she was her favorite.

Now Anko skipped beside her on their way to the Anbu training fields, "Oh kami! The look on Ibiki's face when he realized that you weren't going to fold was the best! I bet he's wishing for the days when you called him old man-sama and were still afraid of him."

Sakura hip bumped her. "What can I say, I learned from the best."

"Suck up."

"You know it," she chuckled, "So what can you tell me about my new sensei that isn't in the file?"

Anko hummed as she pulled out her training gloves, "Well, he reads porn in public, gives lectures about the necessity of working together, and lets his summons sleep in his house."

Sakura cringed at the thought of her and Anko's snake summons being given free range of either of their houses. That would work so well with her civilian parents.

Anko laughed as she sunk into her fighting position, "Yeah I know, right? Anyway let's jump right in and work off some steam before you go meet one of the most frustrating men ever."

Sakura sunk into the same position. "Come and get me, Bitch," she joked.

"Here I come, Brat!" Anko growled playfully ducking Sakura's starting uppercut.

Sakura's fighting style was simple. Hit them before they hit you and there is no shame in fighting dirty. Once Genma had asked her why she fought so dirty during a spar, Sakura had thrown dirt in his eyes and responded, "An honorable death is still death, I prefer to remain alive." Anko had never been so proud.

Of course now when Anko was the one fighting her she retracted her previous statement. For one thing the only part of the young girl's fighting style that was predictable what the fact that she always tried to get the first hit. After that Sakura was as predictable as the weather which is to say not at all.

Anko sent snakes out her sleeves to capture Sakura. In return she crouched to the ground and used her arms to propel her legs into Anko's stomach. At last minute the older woman replaced herself with a startled Anbu. Sakura patted the Anbu on the head in apology and took off towards the trees where she felt her mentor's chakra signature. Anko launched herself from the trees tackling Sakura to the ground.

The two spent an hour engaging in similar activities before Anko hauled the girl over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "All right brat, I just saw the Uzumaki kid run down the street screaming about being late, so you best be on your way. Come report to us when you get done meeting Hatake."

Sakura slid of Anko's shoulder, "Yeah, Yeah."

Anko glared.

Sakura sighed. "Yes I'll come report."

"Good, now scram."

Anko walked back into the building as Sakura did the hand seals for the transportation jutsu and transported to the girls bathroom at the academy. Once inside she dropped the henge, took her hair out of its braid, and unsealed her red dress from a scroll and changed clothing. _There,_ she thought, _I'm now the Sakura the world knows and hates._


	3. Chapter 3

_Kami_ , Sakura groaned, _when I asked Anko about Hatake she didn't mention anything about him being late._ She had known her, Uchiha and Uzumaki where in a group together. What she hadn't known was that her new teacher was going to be two and a half hours late to the introduction.

Uchiha had spent the last couple of hours stanchly ignoring his teammates, while she read her disguised scroll. Uzumaki had spent the past few hours writing graffiti on the board, attempting to flirt with her and now he had decided to put an eraser in the doorway.

"A jounin isn't going to fall for that," Uchiha sneered.

Uchiha was then promptly proven wrong as a silver haired, masked man opened the door and allowed the eraser to fall and coat his head with chalk dust. "My first impression… I hate you all."

 _Oh fantastic. Not only do I have a crackpot sensei, I have a crackpot sensei who hates me,_ Sakura thought as she followed her teammates to the roof for their first team meeting.

Sakura volunteered to go first in introductions so that after she could zone out the brain dead declarations of her teammates.

"My dream is to kill a certain man, and my goal is to resurrect the Uchiha clan."

Sakura perked up at Uchiha's declaration. _Yea, that kinda sounds like a red flag. At least I'll have something to report though._

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes at her teacher. Don't eat breakfast. Did he think they were stupid? Of course every shinobi knew that you need to eat in case you're put in a situation where there is no food. She almost laughed when he tried to scare them saying they'd throw it up. If only he knew some of the training exercises that Anko had put her through.

She shook herself from her thoughts to find that her sensei had left. Really they had only just been made a team didn't he want to at least try to get to know them. He just did a half assed introduction then left. _He probably isn't expecting us to pass given that no one's ever passed his stupid test before._

"Hey Sakura-chan," Uzumaki appeared in front of her, "Do you want to go get ramen together."

Internally she sighed but externally she smiled. "I'm sorry Naruto," she began as she picked herself off the floor, "but I have to go run some errands." _God I hope he doesn't try to walk with me._

Luckily for her the kid ran off to go get his ramen and she made her way back down to the girls' bathroom and henged herself into that morning's appearance and changed clothing.

She was just making her way out of the academy gates when she was stopped by Uchiha of all people. "Hey, you! Who are you? You don't go to the academy."

 _This day just gets worse and worse and worse._

She ignored him and kept walking. He grabbed her arm painfully, "I am talking to you."

She did her best to look innocent, "Me?"

Uchiha glared, "You. What are you doing here?"

She searched her brain for an excuse, "I'm looking for my sister. She looks a lot like me. Have you seen her?" Okay so it wasn't her best excuse, but it would have to do.

He looked skeptical as he pointedly stared at her. She ignored him. "She's five years old and I need to find her before she gets scared."

He let her go, "Year one classes got out an hour ago," and walked off.

 _That was a close one. Seriously what is wrong with him?_

Sakura's journey to the T&I building went fine until she stepped into the building and her way was blocked by none other than Genma Shiranui.

 _Can I get a break today? Just one single break?_

"If it isn't Anko's apprentice. The crazy snake lady isn't here."

"How are you so sure I'm Anko's apprentice? You've only seen me today."

Genma crossed his arms and grinned at her, "Your fighting style and body type are the same as all those other girls that follow Anko around."

Sakura slid between his legs and continued down the hallway towards Ibiki's office, "Congratulations Shiranui! I knew you were a womanizer, but apparently you're a pedophile too since you've taken so much time to study my body."

Genma dropped his senbon, "What the hell is wrong with you."

Sakura grinned and flipped her brown hair, "I'm Anko's apprentice," and slipped into Ibiki's office.

She took her usual seat in front of Ibiki's desk and picked up a file from the pile he pushed towards her. Taking his que she started reading files and filing them away in the giant black cabinet next to his desk while they waited for Anko to show up. Ibiki had sadly taken Sakura up on her paperwork offer, so since she had been under Anko's tutelage she'd been helping Ibiki and Anko file their paper work. The only upside was that she probably knew more state secretes than most jonin.

After about an hour of her and Ibiki sifting through files in a comfortable silence, Anko burst through the door with all her usual energy and flamboyance. In one hand she held a bag of dango and the other held Genma by the collar. "Look who I found outside the office door," she sang.

Sakura didn't bother to look up, "Un, he found out who I am." At Ibiki's stiffening, she elaborated, "Well not _who_ I am, but that all the girls following Anko around are the same."

Anko pushed him into the room and slammed the door shut. Genma cowered as she drew two cans from her bag and threw them. They flew over his head and into the waiting hands of the two people doing paperwork.

"This should be locked up. It's too classified to be put in the regular cabinet." Sakura slid a particularly thick file over the table to Ibiki with one hand and opened her drink with the other.

Anko plunked her bag onto a corner of the desk cleared of files and took her seat next to Sakura.

Genma watched uncertainly from his place by the door, confused by the trio's easygoing and practiced manner.

Finally Ibiki set his last file down, "Report."

"In front of him?" Sakura jerked her thumb at Genma.

Ibiki stared at Genma making him squirm, "Shiranui, how many other people have come to the same conclusion as you."

"Um, no one that I know of."

Ibiki continued his staring as Sakura put the last of the files in the black filing cabinet, "You could prove useful. Sit."

Sakura raised an eyebrow, but started her report anyway. "I would have liked some warning about Hatake's perpetual lateness," she looked at Anko who was looking overly innocent, "He obviously doesn't think that we will pass the test. The most interesting information came from Uchiha who revealed that his goal is to kill his brother and restart his clan. If you could I'd attempt to get him in for a psychological evaluation."

Genma stared at her, "Who are you."

She flipped her hair again, a gesture she'd stolen from Ino, "No one important."

Ibiki steepled his fingers, "Remove you're henge Haruno."

"Eh?" Both Sakura and Anko looked at him like he was crazy.

"I'm assuming that Shiranui can keep his mouth shut, but in case something happens to Anko or me you need someone else who can vouch for you. He's not really under my jurisdiction so no one would suspect."

Without further prompting Sakura removed her henge.

"Eh? You're the girl that follows around Sasuke Uchiha!" He gapped.

"And you're one of the Anbu that used to watch Uzumaki from the windows at the Academy."

"But those girls started coming around when you," he counted on his fingers, "Six! You learned the henge technique when you were six!"

Anko laughed, "Hey, hey the Brat has good chakra control."

"Excuse me, Bitch?"

"Oh _excuse_ me, she has near perfect chakra control," Anko corrected.

Genma continued opening and closing his mouth.

Sakura looked at the clock and caught the time, "Well as much fun as this is, watching Genma speechless for once, I have to go home." She motioned to Ibiki and Anko, "I'll report tomorrow after the test," and transported herself out of the room.

Genma stared at the spot she had disappeared from for a while.

"How can she even do that!"


	4. Chapter 4

Sakura wasn't sure the last time she had been this pissed. First of all Hatake, or Kakashi-sensei as he asked them to call him, had been three hours late. There is no excuse for being three hours late.

Then he'd proceeded to tell three genin that they needed to fight him for two bells even though the test was supposed to be about team work! It was no wonder he'd never had a genin team that passed before it was like he didn't want a team, which he probably didn't. If he wanted them to pass his test by working together he should have given them a lecture about the importance of completing a mission thereby forcing them to work together for the good of the mission even though one of them might be sent back.

But that wasn't even what pissed Sakura off the most. Sure he might have a crazy test to specifically keep kids from passing, but he had no excuse for what he'd done to her.

He'd fought Uzumaki hand to hand and while he'd done it half-assed and read a book during, he'd probably spent the most time fighting against him. As for Uchiha he'd actually gotten moderately serious with the kid and spent most his attention on him.

But for her, for her he'd merely trapped her in a genjutsu. That sexist pig thought that she wouldn't be able to find her way out of even a freaking D rank genjutsu. Didn't the idiot even read her file? Her best practical scores were in noticing and dispelling a genjutsu and he thought so little of her that the only thing that he'd done against her was that!

She was so angry that when it was cast she let out a screech of fury. Luckily, Kakashi thought it was a scream of agony from seeing the illusion of the Uchiha die. In reality though she had been confused as to why she had picked the Uchiha until she remembered that she was supposed to be his number one fangirl.

Then she'd come across the Uchiha stuck in the ground and she had frozen in an attempt not to laugh in his face. Seriously though, who the hell fell for the head hunter jutsu? She'd then dug her disgruntled teammate out and suggested that they'd team up to get the bells since she was the first teammate that she'd come across during the test. The Uchiha bastard had then had the nerve to tell her that she was weak and would just slow him down.

How. Dare. He.

She knew that her practical grades weren't the best at the Academy, for obvious reasons, but her written scores where on par if not better than the Nara kid. She could have been useful to him as a strategist or in setting up traps, but no it was the 'Uchiha Show' and he was the star.

Her anger had only increased when Kakashi had shown up to yell at them all about how Uchiha and Uzumaki had only helped themselves and that she'd only focused on Uchiha. Uchiha was the only one who'd crossed her path. There was no way that she was going to go out of her way to help Uzumaki when he had stupidly attacked someone stronger than him.

Eventually they'd all passed when Sakura had offered the tied up Uzumaki her bento box, telling the two that she'd actually eaten breakfast and the Uchiha had stood look out for their Sensei whilst she fed their teammate.

So now here she was angrily walking home after she had parted ways with Kakashi and Uchiha. She needed to get home and change out of this silly dress and get her hair out of her face. Seriously, why did none of the teachers ever comment on how unpractical her usual getup was? Her _civilian_ mother had bought it for her because she thought that it looked _cute_.

Sakura sneaked quietly through the front door, in case her parents where home, and went upstairs to change. Once dressed again, she slipped out her window and onto the roof. Usually she would transport herself somewhere near the T&I building, but today she needed to work off some steam by running.

She ran, taking the long way, as fast as she could, pumping more chakra into her legs than normal. On a logical level she knew that wasting chakra was a stupid thing to do. On an emotional level, however, she loved the way the chakra left her body almost like she was pushing her anger out with it.

She jumped off the roof to land in front of her destination. Unfortunately the run had only taken a slight edge off her anger. She pried open the door to the building and slammed it shut again.

"Wow Chibi-chan what's got you all worked up," Genma joked from his spot on the wall, where he was reclining with several other jonin.

Sakura ignored him.

Anko poked her head out of the nearest door, the lounge, and smirked, "How was your first day, Brat?"

"That man is a sexist, idiotic, most infuriating man I've ever met! It's a good thing you and Ibiki have been training me, because heaven knows he's not going to pay one bit of attention to me at all! He fought the other two and you know what he did to me? A genjustu! A fucking D-RANK genjutsu!" she seethed. She let out a frustrated scream, "I need something to punch!"

The group of jonin stared at the young girl with, currently, green hair. The unlucky Anbu from the day before quietly scooted away. Anko looked at the girl thoughfully.

"I wonder if Ibiki would let me take you to some of the interrogation rooms to release your anger."

Genma jumped between them, "And that's where as the more responsible adult, I should step in and say that that would be a bad idea."

Sakura rounded on him, "Why because I'm a girl!?"

He put his hands up in the universal 'I mean no harm' sign, "No, because we need our prisoners to _not_ die quite yet."

Sakura let out another frustrated scream.

"Calm down kiddo," One of the jonin in the group said. He was obviously newly promoted to jonin because anyone who was an Anbu or in the T&I sector knew not to mess with Mitarashi's apprentice.

"What do you want to spar with me? Because like I said earlier: I'm just dying to punch something."

Anko sent a paralysis jutsu and Sakura. She countered it.

"Come on Princess, let's go spar."

"Princess? Who the fuck are you calling Princess, Bitch?"

"Looks like someone needs a lesson in who their superiors are." Anko looked at Genma, "Remember how Ibiki wanted to turn one of the training fields into Suna like conditions, but didn't want to pay for the demolition? Tell him were going to demolish one for him right now," she put a hand on Sakura's shoulder and then transported them out by replacing them with two jounin who'd previously been training in the field.

Genma turned around, "So who wants to go with me to tell Morino?"

The group of jonin made various excuses and then left the building leaving Genma all alone to confront the head of T&I.


	5. Chapter 5

Sakura panted from her spot on the ground. The training ground around her had certainly seen better days, but was a far cry from the demolition that Anko had predicted.

"Alright kid," Anko lowered herself to the ground by Sakura's head and set a cold water bottle by her face, "Wanna tell me what's really bothering you?"

Sakura groaned and rolled away from the older woman, taking her water bottle with her, "Nothing's wrong."

"Yea and you came in yelling about Hatake because?"

"He's just being unfair…and sexist."

"Uh huh. And that called for your screaming in the building's lobby."

"Yes."

Anko sighed and nudged the kid with her foot, "You and I both know that there's something more to it."

Sakura stayed silent as she was continually nudged. She rolled over onto her stomach and laid her head on her crossed arms. "I don't know," came her muffled voice, "Kakashi-sensei didn't even try to engage me, Uchiha thinks I'm worthless, and Uzumaki only likes me cuz my hair."

Anko stared down at her for a long time, then whispered, "Oh my kami. I think this is puberty."

Sakura rolled back over and sat up quickly looking horrified, "Don't say things like that."

"Well then tell me what's wrong because if you don't I'm going to run through the T&I building screaming from the roof tops that my apprentice is going into puberty."

Sakura pouted, "I don't know!" Anko didn't answer or instigate any response as she waited for Sakura to answer. "I'm just frustrated," her cheeks puffed out, "He treats me like a kid."

"You are a kid."

"I know but…"

Anko pulled Sakura close to her, "You know who my teacher was right?"

"Orochimaru."

"Yea and even though I wish I had, I never hated him back then." She watched Sakura's eyes widen. "Yup, when he became my genin sensei he brought out a lot of my potential, and I used to think he hung the moon. I always wanted him to see how good I'd done. I always wanted his praise."

"So?"

"So what you want from Kakashi is the same thing. You want validation."

"Eh? But that doesn't even make any sense!"

"He's your genin sensei. You've waited for this day a long time, for some strong shinobi to see the potential in you, especially since none of the teachers in the Academy ever did."

Sakura crossed her arms. She refused to believe that she simply wanted Kakashi to like her. "I have you. You tell me all the time that I'm doing well. You know my real strength."

"Yea, but I'm like your sister." She ruffled a surprised looking Sakura's hair. "That's right! We're like sisters and we're family." Sakura's eyes teared up, but Anko pretended that she didn't notice so as not to embarrass the younger girl. "And no matter how many times your family praises your looks or skills or personality, you always want to hear it from someone else too and you were hoping that, that someone else could be Kakashi."

Sakura had discretely rubbed her tears away, "But that doesn't make any logical sense."

"Emotions aren't logical. Was it logical when you stormed in a couple of hours ago, freaking oozing chakra and yelling, Brat"

"I suppose not."

"See, all better now," Anko grinned as she helped herself and Sakura off the ground and starting running through their cool down stretches.

Sakura grinned, though Anko couldn't see it because she was bending down touching her toes, "You're surprisingly good with things like this, Bitch."

Anko grimaced through a quad stretch, "Did you have to call me that in front of everyone in the lobby. I now regret telling you that you could pick any nickname you wanted."

"But I'm your loving bratty little sister and you're the bitchy older sister. It all works out. Plus I know that you secretly enjoyed me saying it when I was younger because you though that it was funny." Anko pouted. "You used to give me candy every time I called you that. You basically conditioned me."

"Whatever. I made my bed and had to lie in it yada yada yada, but seriously, Brat, I'm kinda worried about you."

Sakura sighed, "We literally just worked this out."

"This is different. When's the last time that you had friends your own age?"

"Well mentally speaking, Genma is like a child."

Anko lowered herself to the ground and crossed one leg over the other and stretched, "I mean someone who is your age physically."

"You brought this up when Ino started talking to me."

"Yea but it's come to my attention, by way of Inoichi, that apparently children need friends and social interaction from people their own age. Otherwise they turn out like mass murderer Itachi Uchiha." Anko switched sides and began the stretch again.

Sakura snorted, "I'm not going to kill my family because I don't have enough social interaction from people my own age."

"Well I didn't want to do this," she began imperiously, "But it seems you aren't taking the hint. Brat, I am giving you a mission to befriend your teammates. By the time I come back from my mission in about a week I expect you to be able to tell me your team members favorite food, colors, activities, and things they don't like. Basically everything you learned, and if I don't get enough information, then you fail."

Sakura stared at her sister figure, "This is bullshit!"

"It is not bullshit, and who's teaching you these words."

"You are."

"Fuck! I need to be more careful."

Sakura smiled fondly, "Much more careful."

"I'm not kidding, kid. You coming in today and acting all willy nilly is proof that you might need some more balance in your life. Sure you get interaction here at T&I, which probably isn't that safe, but when's the last time you spent some time with people as Sakura?"

"But people hate 'Sakura'!"

"Look," Anko set her hands on Sakura's shoulders, "You gotta remember that no matter what you look like or what we call you that you're always Sakura. If you ever go undercover in another country you won't have me or Ibiki or Genma to remind you who you really are, so you need to learn right now how to merge these two personas of yours so that no matter what you look or how you act you remember that you're… Sakura."

"I hate it when you get all philosophical and intelligent."

Anko smacked her upside the head, "I can be smart when I want. Anyway it's time for me to get going. Go home and rest then make an effort tomorrow, Okay?"

"Okay," Sakura sighed.

"Oh and this field better be fixed when I get back," Anko smirked as she disappeared.

Sakura groaned as she surveyed their destruction. Half of the area was flooded, the other half of the ground was torn apart and the trees above were on fire not to mention her own bruises and burns. She'd get herself cleaned up and then she'd head to the library for some earth jutsu scrolls. Kami knows that'd be the only way the field would go back to being relatively normal.


End file.
